The present invention relates to refrigeration devices, such as room air conditioners, and more particularly, to refrigeration devices having condenser coils from which heat is to dissipated.
Refrigeration devices, such as room air conditioners, utilize a condenser coil to dissipate heat from a refrigerant. Such refrigeration devices also typically include an evaporator coil over which warm moist air is directed to cool the air with the further results that moisture is condensed from that air and this condensate is collected below the evaporator. Oftentimes this liquid is directed back to the area where the condenser coil is located. It is known to use this condensate water for cooling, or sub-cooling, the refrigerant flowing through the condenser coil and it is also known to submerge a coil in this water, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,996,764.
Typically the lower portion of the refrigeration apparatus, such as a metal chassis plate, is specially configured to include an embossment or other recessed area for receiving the submerged condenser coil. In some arrangements, the sub-cooling tube or wet loop has a particular configuration which is designed to fit in a specially configured space in the air conditioner base pan. In other arrangements, the use of a sub-cooling tube or wet loop requires the use of additional parts and labor to assemble the submerged coil.
The present invention provides for a wet loop or sub-cooler tube to be used under a full-length condenser coil and to allow the wet loop to fit flush with the bottom of the condenser coil without a sump or emboss below the condenser coil. A condenser unit embodying the principles of the present invention allows a condenser coil to be made, that does not require a wet loop, without additional tooling changes or use of additional parts. Further, the condenser coil according to the present invention maximizes the amount of primary and secondary surfaces that are located in the condensate water while minimizing the required space.
In an embodiment, a header plate, located on both ends of the condenser coil, has two symmetrical notches that are placed at the bottom of the condenser coil. These notches are aligned with the tubing of the condenser so that tubes in the bottom row of the condenser coil are received through the fins between the notches and each notch is positioned directly below a tube in the next adjacent row above the notch. If a wet loop tube is required an appropriate distributor is brazed in place for a particular air conditioner configuration, the fin stock of the condenser coil is pushed to flatten the individual fins down in alignment with the groove. The wet loop is then inserted into this groove of the condenser coil and braised in place. An appropriate distributor is then added to complete the assembly. If a wet loop is not required, the coil is inserted into the unit without pushing the fin stock over and no other tooling changes are needed and no additional parts are used to complete the coolant circuit.